Pakistan’s business confidence remains steady in Feb 2026

March 09, 2026 (MLN):  The overall Business Confidence Index marginally decreased by 0.1 points, reaching 55.3 in February 2026, the latest results of the Business Confidence Survey (BCS), conducted by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) in collaboration with the Institute of Business Administration (IBA), revealed.

This marginal decline was driven by the Services sector, despite a pickup in Industry confidence.

Specifically, the BCI for the Industry sector increased by 0.9 points to 56, while confidence in the Services sector fell by 0.3 points to 55.1.

According to the survey report, the headline index "Overall Business Confidence" is comprised of two sub-indices; "Current Business Confidence Index (CBCI)" and "Expected Business Confidence Index (EBCI)".

It is worth mentioning here that the overall BCI is a weighted average of the Industry and Services sectors with 0.25 and 0.75 weights respectively.

Current Business Confidence

The Current Business Confidence Index (CBCI), which is based on the general economic conditions in the country over the past six months, increased by 0.2 points to 53.1 in February 2026 compared to the previous wave.

Expected Business Confidence

As far as the expectations regarding economic and business conditions in the next six months are concerned, a slight decline was observed in the Expected Business Confidence Index (EBCI) in February, down 0.2 points to 57.6.

Purchasing Managers Index

The Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) increased by 0.6 points to 55.4, reflecting continued expansion in business activity.

Among the sub-components, Business Activity rose to 56.9, Order Books edged up to 56.5, and Total Employees improved to 53.6, while Raw Material Purchases slightly eased to 57.3 and Speed of Suppliers' Delivery held steady at 52.9.

Inflation Expectations

Regarding inflation, the survey revealed that the proportion of businesses expecting higher prices remained broadly anchored in the current wave.

Overall, 65.5% of businesses expected higher prices, a slight decline from 65.9% in January 2026.

At the sector level, inflation expectations in the Industry sector eased, with the proportion falling from 65.8% to 64.0%, while the Services sector saw a rise from 66.1% to 68.5%.

Employment

The survey also highlighted an improvement in employment perceptions in the current wave.

The Current Employment Index increased, driven by gains in both the Industry and Services sectors.

The Expected Employment Index similarly edged upward, reflecting cautious optimism about hiring in the near term.

Capacity Utilization

The Average Current Capacity Utilization (ACCU) of the Manufacturing sector (within the Industry sector) increased notably by 3 percentage points to 69.2% in February 2026, exceeding its long-term average  a positive signal for industrial output and productive capacity in the months ahead.

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